{"id":3538,"date":"2011-08-03T23:31:52","date_gmt":"2011-08-03T21:31:52","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.myza.co.za\/08\/fred-page-ringmaster-of-the-imagination\/"},"modified":"2011-08-03T23:31:52","modified_gmt":"2011-08-03T21:31:52","slug":"fred-page-ringmaster-of-the-imagination","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.myza.co.za\/press\/fred-page-ringmaster-of-the-imagination\/","title":{"rendered":"Fred Page, Ringmaster of the Imagination"},"content":{"rendered":"

A new book on Port Elizabeth artist Frederick (Fred) Hutchinson Page (1902 \u2013 1984), produced and printed entirely in Port Elizabeth, has been published. Titled \u201cThe Ringmaster of the Imagination\u201d it is an inside view on the life and journey of the artist. Page is considered to be one of South Africa\u2019s foremost surrealist painters. The book is written by Eastern Cape art biographer Jeanne Wright who was commissioned by Page\u2019s attorney and friend Cecil Kerbel, the book is the first comprehensive compilation of the artist\u2019s work. Much of the work portrayed in the book has been drawn from private collections and therefore is revealed for the first time. Previously, the only work which has been available to the public is held in some national galleries and the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan Art Museum<\/a> in Port Elizabeth which holds all his memorabilia as well as a major collection of his work.<\/p>\n

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Cecil Kerbel<\/p>\n

Cecil Kerbel, a lifetime friend and funder of the book, says, \u201cthis biography is the realization of a lifelong ambition for me. I am delighted that at long last, Fred Page is receiving the recognition that he deserves.\u201d Cecil and Fred met in their early twenties during their studies. Cecil was fascinated by Fred\u2019s art and they developed a close friendship with one another. \u201cThis friendship opened up another side of life for me,\u201d says Cecil.<\/p>\n

Page lived and worked for most of his life in Central, one of the oldest parts of Port Elizabeth. Using the buildings as a backdrop to a range of characters and narratives, he has documented with considerable accuracy, areas of the city\u2019s architecture that reflect a specific time within the city\u2019s history. Reclusive by nature, Page did not receive much publicity during his life time. His subject matter was obscure and unfashionable for many years and did not hold much appeal for the general public. However, his output has subsequently been recognized as an important and unique reflection of not only the South African city he lived in but also of an extraordinarily fertile and idiosyncratic imagination at work.<\/p>\n

\u201cFred Page is an artist who has come in from under the radar to surprise me, as an author, with the range and diversity of his material. He was uniquely South African and his passion for the city he chose to live in, revealed not only the imaginative world of his creative life as a painter, but also the poetic and fantastical side of life in Port Elizabeth as he perceived it,\u201d says Jeanne Wright. The book is available in a soft cover edition and has three hundred works fully illustrated in colour accompanied by an explanatory text. The book is available in all leading book stores from the 5th of August 2011.<\/p>\n

Contact Info for Fred Page<\/a> (If you want to buy the book, dummy \u2013 not actually talk to him!).<\/p>\n

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Port Elizabeth Artist – Fred Page<\/p>\n

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